Santigold’s self-titled album came out last year, but she’s been writing songs and singing with other artists for a while. Before her solo career, she was the singer for a Philly-based punk rock band. Since then, she has worked with several hip-hop artists, including rapper M.I.A. Her album is ’80’s inspired music with quirky vocals and electronic beats. Sounding occasionally like Gwen Stefani, she vacillates between singing and almost rapping (or that talking-sing-songy thing that Gwen does sometimes). Her song “Creator” has a hard hitting beat that sounds like futuristic hip-hop. Yet, she in no way falls into the hip-hop category. She moves to a more melodic sound with “I’m A Lady” and then into reggae-inspired beats with “Your Voice”. Also appealing about her album is that the music is not all electronic, it’s obviously real musicians playing real instruments which gives the music an edge. Her overall sound is reminiscent the '80‘s MTV darlings, Missing Persons. Although the band included talented rock musicians, it was lead singer Dale Bozzio’s crazy make-up and outfits that received most of the attention. At the time, I loved the hot pink stripe in Bozzio’s platinum blonde hair. On a school trip to London in 1984, I discovered Manic Panic hair dye. I returned from the trip with my own hot pink stripe and some funky new threads (probably some pointy shoes and a mini skirt). None of which really saw the light of day until I moved to London many years later. Missing Persons’ album Spring Session M was one of my favorites in the early ’80’s. The record was constantly on my stereo.
When I listen to Missing Persons now, I can pretty much sing along to every song. Their sound is catchy. The songs are simple and fun, but offer ample opportunity for rocking out. Bozzio actually has a strong voice and does some interesting Prince-like vocal acrobatics. Despite heavy MTV rotation, they didn’t have many hits. I only recently discovered this when I noticed all the blank stares after mentioning their song “Walking in L.A.” to a group of friends. Maybe the crowd was slightly too young? I even sang a bit, “Walkin’ in L.A. Nobody walks in L.A.” No one had any idea who I was talking about. It’s a brilliant song. If you’ve been to LA or you live there, you know that NO ONE actually walks anywhere in L.A., unless you are truly poverty stricken. Even the homeless tend to live out of their cars. Other songs that had mild success were “Words” and “Destination Unknown.” Santigold has said that she’s influenced by ’80’s pop artists like Blondie and Devo. It will be interesting to hear what she does next. Her song “Superman” is based on the Siouxise and The Banshees song “Red Light”. I wouldn’t call Siouxsie a pop artist, but the influence on this song is clearly there. It’s refreshing to hear an artist specifically mention Siouxsie as an inspiration. A SWIK in her own right, Siouxsie could be called the godmother of not only punk, but also new wave. Yet, few artists credit her as an influence. She’ll be getting her own SWIK post soon. Until then, check out Santigold. While you’re at it, don’t forget to refresh your music catalog with some Missing Persons. Life may be strange when you don’t know your destination, but good music can help you carry on with what you know. If you don’t have a destination on Wednesday night, check out the season finale of So You Think You Can Dance on Fox for some new music.
Hear Music
SWIK Santigold Mix
SWIK Missing Persons Mix
See Music
Santigold: L.E.S. Artists and Lights Out
Missing Persons: Words and Destination Unknown
Buy Music
Santigold
Missing Persons
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